Bundled Expeditionary

Thankfully, having drafted several blog entries is a blessing in disguise. LOTRO's move to the new data center on Monday, January 11th, has made it near impossible for me to play the game. I've experienced, along with friends, long stretches of lag, with latency as high as 1200 ms and loss reaching an upwards of 15% nearly every night this week. Until something gets done, particularly the hotfix Frelorn casually mentioned on the forums late Monday night, I won't be able to play. I'll stop in and try again sometime next week, when I have my next chance to play. If anything good came of this week, it was being able to snag the new Yule Festival cosmetics before my client crashed.

Dorthonion Scout

Meet my Beorning. This is the only character I've been playing since January, when I cut LOTRO down to a minimum. I hadn't bothered with making outfits until I felt I had distanced myself from this blog. For months, I was content to simply play and enjoy adventuring in Middle-earth without attachments or distractions. When I made it to the North Trollshaws (the much needed revamp was amazing, by the way), I felt the need to make an outfit. The abundance of evergreen trees reminded me of Dorthonion, the pine-covered highlands north of Beleriand. I've always imagined it to be similar to the other great forests of Middle-earth before Morgoth corrupted it. Thus, greens and browns became my central colors.

Studded Ranger - Aerthain of Gladden

Here's that particular outfit I mentioned last week, the one that somewhat resembles one of Hymne's previous outfits, The Passing of the Grey Company. It's a rare sight having an earthen-toned outfit featured on this blog, let alone a Ranger one. This would be my first Ranger-themed creation. I usually find them a little overdone, especially after seeing multiple blog posts over the years and an inordinate amount of hunters wearing the Ranger or Grey Company sets from the epic books. They were a dime a dozen and I'm not fond of looking like everybody else (just like with those undyeable pre-order cosmetic sets). However, the Medium Nadhin Jacket gave me the opportunity to make something that I felt would stand out of that particular crowd.

Harvestmath Series - Soothsayer

I have to start this post by saying that in no way, shape, or form, has the art department at Turbine come close to the level of design and form-fitting gear that Rise of Isengard provided to the community. No bodies were distorted while wearing that expansion exclusive gear. No arms or legs clipped through clothing while moving. Shoulders did not float above the model. There were three distinct sets for each armor class obtained as quest rewards. Never has an expansion made a character's appearance so individualized within its own content. When I ran my alts through Dunland and Isengard, I made sure to collect whatever I hadn't on previous runs. Did you know that Massive Black was the company to create a majority of the RoI expansion concept art?

Snowbound - Pennycandy of Gladden

It's been a while since I've dressed up a hobbit, especially this little darling. I don't know what it is about them, but no matter what I put on a female hobbit, I feel all warm and giggly and melty on the inside. It's like a cuteness overload! (D'awww!!!) And speaking of warm and fuzzy, I felt compelled to create a winter-friendly outfit for one. Versus using evendim blue, which I abuse to no end, I opted for the darker ered luin blue to make a bolder contrast between the lighter and darker colors, and to make the fur stand out. Have a character heading towards the Misty Mountains or Forochel? Look no further!

Despite the fact that summer is in full swing, sweltering heat and disgusting muggy days included, a little bit of winter apparel makes the weather seem cooler. Any more 90°F days (32°C), and I'll be praying for the snow! Gloredh of Wandering Around Arda used the same location and temperature-related reasons in a recent outfit, Ambassador to the Elves.

Dusk Walker - Morghann of Gladden

Material Middle-earth is back in business with a complete overhaul of the layout and graphics in addition to an updated contact page, tagging system, and screenshot guide. Please feel free to browse around, adjust to the new layout, and offer suggestions.

Definitely taking a walk on the wild side with this outfit, that's for sure! I try not to use more than 3 different colors in an outfit because it can be artistically disastrous. However, there are several distinct colors in this ensemble and it works wonderfully! I honestly had no concept for this outfit today. It haphazardly fell together while I was both mixing and matching between light and medium armor and assigning random colors to each piece. The T5 crafted medium chest and leggings, both from the Elven Campaigner's set, were the building blocks to this outfit. I'd have to say those two pieces are arguably the most appealing and coordinated pieces of all the crafting professions in LOTRO. Elegant designs, a pleasing mishmash of colors, and dyeable areas that don't overwhelm either piece. Safe to say, this was one of my more unique creations.

Walnut Wizard - Faewynn of Gladden

An awesome dynamic pose due to a bug! Did you know the staff should be in her hands during this animation?

Welcome to this experiment of mine, an experiment not in hues, but in tones of brown. You'll notice how I've tried to cover the entire spectrum, going from white, to cream, to brown, to umber, and finally black. I've backtracked through my blog and this would be the first time I've actually concentrated on a specific color. Making it was the easy part. Taking screenshots...that's a different story.

There's currently a visual bug or an animation glitch where your characters will not grab hold of their weapons during an out of combat skill animation. The Champion's blade wall? You swing an invisible glowing sword while your actual weapons are strapped to your character's side. The Warden's Battle Preparation skill results in your spear/javelin gambit using invisible weapons. The Lore-master's signs of power skills result in the animation pictured above. Oddly enough, these bugs don't show up while in combat. I've bugged this, but I don't expect it to be fixed anytime soon. However, it's great for getting some unique poses without a weapon obscuring your character!

Woodland Sentinel - Morghann of Gladden

Have I ever been a major stickler for the lore? Sometimes, yes. Sometimes, no. When it comes to dressing up my characters, I've never adhered to it. Your character doesn't need to be an elf to wear something elvish nor a dwarf for something dwarvish. Sometimes it's about your character's background. Sometimes it looks too good to pass up! If you're like me, sometimes you'll get sick of using the same model for specific colorings and stylings. For some reason, my cappy always wears something in indigo, violet, or purple that's suitable for the race of Man. I've decided to shake up the status quo and throw on something green and elvish. *GASP*

Let it be said, however, that I have the utmost respect for those outfitters who willingly and consistently remain within the confines of the lore.

Sorrow for Elder Days - Nathrien of Gladden

This would be my first time posting a somber outfit. Generally, I like keeping my Middle-earth clothing bright and cheerful, even with earthen tones, but this week I wasn't in the mood. I've been becoming increasingly disenchanted with LOTRO since the release of Helm's Deep. Big Battles have been run so much that everybody has top end gear, become bored with them, or a combination of the two. The class trees have divided the playerbase. The population on my server has dwindled significantly and now I find myself logging in simply to make outfits. If it weren't for the cosmetic system, I wouldn't be clinging to LOTRO as I currently am. Many friends have left for other games. I have found myself pining for the days before the Riders of Rohan expansion. If you haven't heard, WB laid off 30+ employees from Turbine, some of which were long term Devs and QA members. I fear this game has permanently fallen into "maintenance mode."

As much as it pains me to say it, this blog's days are numbered...and it will function so long as I have the drive.

Scout of the Fold - Aerthain of Gladden

And here we are, another outfit attempting to reclaim pre-order cosmetics--this time, the Hauberk of the Westfold. I do love the looks these special cosmetics have, but I still can't stand the fact that they are 100% undyeable. So why did I choose to work with this particular piece this time? Of the three Rise of Isengard hauberks (click here to see all three sets), this was the easiest one to use. The red and green variants are tougher to coordinate due to a slightly muted color. For some reason, every time I've tried to use these pre-order pieces, something gets shoehorned into the outfit and it rarely looks normal. But, here's hoping! : )

Winter Series - Warden of the Watchtower

Sifting through and shifting around my library of cosmetics in order to organize them more efficiently, I stumbled across a number of pieces from the Rise of Isengard days. Between landscape, quest rewards, and instance drops, I had quite a bit to choose from. I thought to myself, "Why not?" and proceeded to make an outfit, settling yet again on a cold-weather theme. Every now and then, whether I'm in Wildermore, Forochel, the Tâl Methedras or some other snowy area, I feel a tad underdressed.  I had been catching up on my Dunland epics on the Warden when I came to this conclusion.

Cosmetic Challenge - Wilderness Scavenger

Last year, in October I believe, I was challenged by a friend and former LOTRO player to devise an outfit revolving around the Jacket of the Fist-way (or any of its identical cousins) from the Warden class vendor at the Ox-clan Camp in Nan Curunir. Naturally, it had to be one of those pieces that dyed oddly. If you've ever worked with any T1 Tower of Orthanc gear from the Ox-clan Camp, you'll have noticed that all the pieces dye a muted color due to a greyish-blue base. If you didn't know that, now you do! I had become so frustrated with that centerpiece that I put this outfit aside for a while. Unfortunately, I had almost forgotten about this outfit. If it weren't for me recently cataloging creations that I've never used or had no intention of using, I wouldn't have resumed working on this almost a year later. 

Luciana, my dear friend, this is dedicated to you! Hopefully you're still checking out this blog : )

Wanderer of the West - Andalost of Gladden

Being the cosmetic packrat I am, I had to use one of my extra character slots and build a new character. Even though a new character meant more storage, it also meant seven more outfits to create. And so I built one using a few pieces that were collecting dust and created a sensible traveler's outfit for a fresh Lore-master. It's a rather unassuming compilation. Plenty of earthy colors and a minimal amount of designs that prevented it from looking gaudy. I felt like I was blending in with the townsfolk, even though these pieces seemed a fashionable step higher by comparison.

Forest-friend - Lanael of Gladden

Green has always been my favorite color for my Rune-keeper, Lanael. Looks like I've discovered another character that heavily associates with a specific color, very much in the way shades of purple agree with my Captain. It's probably the personality I've envisioned for each specific character that leads me to dress them in certain fabrics and styles. That could very well be why I've stopped working on particular outfits. Even though it can look great, I can't envision that particular one wearing it in Middle-earth. But, that's what alts are for! I originally modeled this outfit on my Warden in navy blue.

Eagle-friend - Satella of Gladden

Can you believe that I haven't posted an actual LOTRO outfit since April? It certainly feels nice to get back this! The first thing I did when I got back was figure out what I've used in outfitting (and how frequently) as well as what I haven't used. Needless to say, I've heavily favored a few pieces. One piece, the center of this design, the Hauberk of the Eagle's Crest, hasn't been used until now. You'd think that having a particular piece for more than two years would mean I use it more often. Nope. After fooling around with it, I discovered why it sat in storage. Only the white portions of the piece actually dye, leaving you with a primarily navy color.

Return of the Shieldmaiden

Traveler of the East Wall

A Midnight Snack - Asphodella of Gladden

"'I know,' said Frodo. 'But all the same,' he added with a shamefaced laugh, 'I am terrified of him and his dogs. I have avoided his farm for years and years. He caught me several times trespassing after mushrooms, when I was a youngster at Brandy Hall. On the last occasion he beat me, and then took me and showed me to his dogs. "See, lads," he said, "next time this young varmint sets foot on my land, you can eat him. Now see him off!" They chased me all the way to the Ferry. I have never got over the fright – though I daresay the beasts knew their business and would not really have touched me.'"

- J.R.R. Tolkien, The Fellowship of the Ring, "A Shortcut to Mushrooms"

Early Cosmetic Adventure - Cirilyn of Gladden

Fleetfooted Defender - Cirilyn of Gladden